The Ghost Tree by Christina Henry Published by Berkley on September 8 2020
Genres: Adult, Horror
Pages: 432
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Small town secrets and teenagers coming of age meet head-on in Christina Henry’s latest horror story, a book that worked for me on some levels but not on others.
To be honest, until about the halfway point, I wasn’t sure if I was going to like this book much. It’s quite different from what I was expecting, and it’s also very different from Christina Henry’s other books. However, it did start to come together in the second half, as the pacing really improves and the story finally starts to make sense. I also want to mention that the title is a little misleading, because this is not a ghost story at all (in fact, it’s about witches). What Henry does really well, though, is capture the angst and uncertainty of growing up, which is a good thing because this is a coming-of-age story at its heart.
Lauren diMucci is fourteen and lives in the small town of Smiths Hollow. She and her friend Miranda have been besties forever, but lately they seem to be growing apart. Miranda is obsessed with boys and clothes and losing her virginity, but Lauren is still waiting for her period to start and feels more comfortable hanging out with Miranda in the nearby woods under “their” special tree, an old, lightning-struck oak which they fondly call the “ghost tree.”
The idyllic life in Smiths Hollow is shattered one day when crotchety old Mrs. Schneider finds the mutilated bodies of two young girls in her yard. Nothing like this has ever happened in Smiths Hollow before—or has it? Surely everyone remembers when Lauren’s dad was found dead in the woods a year ago, his heart ripped out of his chest, or at least Lauren does. Newcomer cop Alejandro “Alex” Lopez is called to the scene of the crime to investigate, but oddly, soon after the details of the murders are recorded and processed, Alex discovers that the residents of Smiths Hollow are already starting to forget the murders even happened.
Faced with a mystery that is too tempting to ignore, Alex starts to delve into the town’s past and uncovers a horrifying secret—Smiths Hollow seems to be under a curse that’s been in place for years. But something has disrupted the curse, and the townspeople are starting to remember things long forgotten. Something evil lies in the woods and it’s about to break free.
I think the best thing about The Ghost Tree is the way Henry captures the feeling of coming of age in the 1980s. She throws in lots of 80s pop culture references—popular movies, TV shows, clothing brands, etc—which made the time period feel authentic. I also loved a lot of the teen angst that Lauren and Miranda are feeling, the awkwardness of needing to fit in as a teenager but not really knowing how to do it. Henry really nails the bittersweet realities of how childhood friends grow apart, as Lauren struggles to keep her special friendship with Miranda alive, while Miranda simply leaves Lauren in the dust because she’s just not ready to grow up.
I also loved the way Henry sets up the mystery of Smiths Hollow and tells her story through the eyes of the various characters. The perspective shifts from Lauren to Miranda to Mrs. Schneider to Alex Lopez and even to Mayor Touhy, who is holding on to a very unsettling secret. I love this method of storytelling, and I thought it worked really well in this book. This is a big cast of characters who each bring something important to the table, and even though I didn’t necessarily like all the characters, I did like the way we get to see the story from so many different points of view.
But as for the story itself, it felt at times like it was trying too hard. I really liked the witch story line, although I thought it was overshadowed by everything else that was going on. You’ve got a monster who is killing young girls, a scary tree in the woods, an evil Mayor who knows much more than he lets on, a coming of age story, predatory males, lost memories, racism, conflicts between parents and children. Oh and I didn’t even mention a psychic four-year-old boy who draws creepy crayon pictures of things that might come true. It’s a lot, and I’m not sure how successful Henry was in bringing all these elements together.
With such a big cast of characters, I was surprised to find that I didn’t really like anyone in this story except for a couple of them. Nana, who is Lauren’s grandmother, lives in the big, old house on the hill, and it turns out she’s descended from a line of witches who figure into the town’s curse. Nana’s part is rather small—she’s really only used as a device to relate the history of the town and how the curse came to be. But I loved the “story within a story” as she tells Lauren the tale in a section called “Among the Witches,” which adds a nice bit of folklore to an otherwise contemporary story. I also really enjoyed Alex’s character. He’s part of a huge, multi-generational Hispanic family who all live in the same house, a house that unfortunately sits next to the horrid Mrs. Schneider. As someone who just recently came to Smiths Hollow, Alex has a more objective view of what’s happening, and I liked his practical nature and problem solving attitude. He’s also one of the few men in the story who isn’t obsessed with getting into the pants of all the young girls in town (more on that later).
But the rest of the characters just didn’t work that well for me. Miranda is a caricature of a horny, sex obsessed teen who wears all the hip clothes (Jordache jeans and Adidas sneakers) and cares more about her appearance than her best friend. She also seems to have an unhealthy eating disorder and refuses to eat in front of boys—she’s constantly telling herself not to eat like a pig—and I found this both ridiculous and sad. I’m pretty sure Miranda is damaged in some way but we never really find out why. She basically dumps Lauren because she won’t go on a double date with her, and she lets the disgusting Tad feel her up just so he’ll take her to school in his Camaro.
Then there’s old Mrs. Schneider, a racist who is horrified that the “Mexicans” next door have invaded her town. She also blames them for the bad things that are happening in Smiths Hollow. Her blatant racism felt almost clichéd at times and of course made me very uncomfortable, but as far as story elements that made me say “ick,” I have to mention the odd age disparity between Miranda and Lauren and two of the “boys” who have caught their eye. Miranda is fifteen and obsessed with a much older man (we don’t find out the identity of “Him,” as she calls him, until almost the end). And Lauren has her eye on an eighteen year old boy who seems to be attracted to her as well. If this were more of a romance focused story, I could see throwing in this age difference to add drama and conflict, but here it wasn’t really necessary.
But despite my issues, there are moments of both chilling horror and poignant emotion in this story. Even though I hated Mrs. Schneider, Henry reveals a terrible event in her past that made me feel sorry for her. Likewise, I mourned the fragile friendship between Lauren and Miranda and thought about some of my own friendships that went through similar changes. And the ending? The last few lines gave me chills! When Christina Henry is good, she’s really good. And even though The Ghost Tree isn’t my favorite book of hers, I’m still excited to see what she does next.
Big thanks to the publisher for supplying a review copy.
I love this review! You bring up a lot of good points, and I find myself agreeing. Miranda especially, she had deep issues that were never really explored enough.
Cat recently posted…The Ghost Tree by Christina Henry
I really felt sorry for Miranda later on, but boy she bugged me in the beginning!
Good review. The Ghost Tree sounds like a pretty good book if not perfect.
It was, thanks Priscilla:-)
I have never read a book by this author, even if I want to try her out, sooner or later. But horror is not my cup of tea, so I am not in a hurry, to be honest.
But your review was a compelling reading, and even if I think that this book in particular is not for me, there were some interesting things, like when you talk about the characterization of the period. And I am sorry you didn’t love this one, so I wish you more luck with the next one!
She wrote a really good fantasy called The Mermaid, which is also historical fantasy, I think. You might like that!
I check that out! Thank you!!!
Great review!
Thank you:-)
I do enjoy coming of age stories where the author is really able to capture the emotions of that age. It can bring you back to your own youth, even if you never experienced quite what happens in the book (and thank goodness for that, sometimes). I enjoyed the review.
I like coming of age stories because I’m so relieved I don’t have to go through that time period again!
Ahh horror… I don’t read a lot of it (I think you know that ) but when I do venture into horror I usually tend to enjoy it so must give this book a try I think. Also enjoyed some of the author in the past so
Stephanie @ Bookfever recently posted…Medieval Queens Book Tag
I would probably recommend other books of hers over this, but this is definitely got some horrific moments!
I’m not familiar with this book, or Christina Hendry as an author, but this review has got me very interested in The Ghost Tree. Even if some parts didn’t work great for you I think I might enjoy this one. Thanks for putting it on my radar!
Thanks JonBob! I love most of her books, and she writes a LOT.
I have high hopes for this one. I’ve also heard other people say that this is different to her other books – which is good news for me, as I didn’t actually LIKE the others all that much! 😀
I heard her next book is supposed to be a Sleepy Hollow retelling, which sounds really interesting too.
Hanna @ Booking in Heels recently posted…August 2020 Wrap-Up
Actually, I’ve heard other reviewers mention that THIS is a Sleepy Hollow retelling, which I didn’t get until someone pointed it out, lol. So yep, you’d probably enjoy this!
It would seem that in this case the author took up more material (and characters…) than she could successfully handle – still the core story sounds intriguing, particularly where the… forced memory loss is concerned.
Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Maddalena@spaceandsorcery recently posted…THE BLACK ICE (Harry Bosch #2), by Michael Connelly
The memory loss story line worked really well, and it made sense to me, which is half the battle with me, lol.
Great review, Tammy. 🙂 A coming-of-age story involving witches. you have me intrigued. After reading your review, I also agree this is quite different from Christina Henry’s other works.
Debjani recently posted…August 2020 Wrap-Up
It’s definitely worth reading!
You bring up some really good points. I loved the book, but I get what you mean about there being almost too many issues, and the age difference between Lauren and Jake feels problematic for down the road. I thought the elements related to best friends growing apart felt really real. I did like how Lauren jumped in with more 21st century statements from time to time, even if they felt almost anachronistic — why is it okay for every boy in town to be obsessed with sex, but Miranda is automatically “easy” and a slut? I loved the part when the grandmother told the story too, very eerie and well-presented. I enjoyed reading your thoughts!
Thanks Lisa! I did love the more emotional parts, like the friendship stuff and Lauren’s struggle with her mom.
Hmm, the criticisms I think would get to me too. I do want to check this one out though, I think it will make a good one to read and review for October, hopefully I can find a copy so I can check it out. Great review, Tammy!
It’s definitely a good book for October:-)
It sounds like this is an ambitious novel trying to do too much at the expense of developing fully rounded and authentic characters. Great review, Tammy:)
Thanks Sarah. Lots of readers love this, so take my review with a grain of salt!
Great review although a bummer that this just sounds like an okay read. I still want to read it but will definitely lower my expectations with respect to the characters. That’s a bummer that so few of them were likable. The coming of age in the 80s appeals to me since that’s when I grew up too.
Suzanne @ The Bookish Libra recently posted…Reviews: September Book Releases That Should Be on Your Reading List
A lot of readers love this so hopefully you will enjoy it more than I did:-)
The thing that leapt out at me the most from your review was your description of the book as “trying too hard”…that is very worrying to me, as someone hoping to start it soon! 🙁
Mogsy @ BiblioSanctum recently posted…Bookshelf Roundup 09/05/20: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads
Really curious to hear what you think!
I think the 80s element would appeal to me, I shall investigate further!
Heather recently posted…Would You Rather Tag – Sunny Buzzy’s Questions
The 80s stuff was super fun:-)
I had so many similar thoughts, Tammy! It was such a confusing read for me because there were some really strong elements, but I totally agree that it felt as though it were trying too hard at times and seemed to try to incorporate too many elements. It was a bit disappointing in the sense that I had such high expectations, but still an interesting story for sure!
I’m so glad to hear this, Jordan! I was feeling like the only one with issues, since I’ve read so many rave reviews:-)
I have to say I really quite enjoyed this one but I think your comment about trying to hard is very pertinent. There is a moment in the concluding chapters where it felt like everything was going a bit bat shit crazy.
Lynn 😀
This is not a ghost story? Aw, man. This will be my first book by Christina Henry.
Hey Tammy! I’m catching up on blog hopping after a couple months off. I’ve never read anything by Henry but the premise of this kind of sounds like something I would enjoy?? I’m super curious about the ending now but I don’t think I could get through the whole book based on what you’ve written here.
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